India's bull run in the private equity (PE) sphere gets hotter, as a whopping $1.3 billion in PE funding was cemented at the recently held India Private Equity Fair 2008, in Mumbai. The event, was organized by Yen Expo, part of Mumbai-based merchant banking firm, Yen Management Consultancy.
The fair was attended by a large number of PE players, venture capital firms, high-net worth individuals and angel investors. As per a report by consultancy firm Grant Thornton a total of 32 PE deals valued at $560 million were announced in April 08. March saw greater PE action as funding worth $1.2 billion has entered the country.
PE players like Goldman Sachs, LightSpeed Venture Partners, Axis Private Equity, Actis PE, Tano Capital have a combined investment line up of $500 million, deals of which will be signed in the coming months.
The sectors to benefit this PE windfall include real estate, hospitality, infrastructure, pharma, biotech, automotive, telecom, media and IT. Large PE deals of over $100 million have come down in recent months, but going forward the deal size is likely to grow bigger at $200 million and above.
Arun Chandrachud, director, Yen Management Consultancy said, “Our objective was to bring investors and companies on a common platform for better interaction and understanding. Seeing the kind of funds line up, we feel that it was a success.”
Source: Times of India